


swimming in starlight

by sympatheticskies (princess_zel)



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aang Is A Ray of Sunshine, Alternate Universe - High School, Comedy, F/M, Fluff, Jet and Yue are supportive, Jue (background), Katara is pining, Sokka and Azula are hella into each other, Sokkla (background), Taang (background), This is pure self indulgence lol, Toph Beifong Being Awesome, Zuko is kind of smooth, Zutara, nostalgic vibes, they're in high school
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 21:34:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29214246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princess_zel/pseuds/sympatheticskies
Summary: Theysaythat they'll go swimming and stargazing. Theysaythat it'll be a fun Friday night out with friends....Until it becomes a date night and Katara is in danger of becoming a seventh-wheel and Zuko is her only hope at preventing it.
Relationships: Aang/Toph Being (Avatar), Azula/Sokka (Avatar), Jet/Yue (Avatar), Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 39
Collections: Zutara February Flash Fics





	swimming in starlight

**Author's Note:**

> this is pure self indulgence. i miss high school. i miss being around friends. sue me
> 
> i wrote this for day four of zk february flash fics, "in my dreams" - this isn't proofread so i apologize in advance for any italics overuse smh
> 
> also yes. this has all my favorite ships because i love them and they're my serotonin

“Yue, you’ve gotta be kidding me.” Katara’s plastic fork pauses over her paper bowl full of salad, and her grip on the utensil tightens.

“I’m not,” Yue replies simply, lifting a spoonful of sea prune stew to her lips. Her nose wrinkles at the taste, “All these years at this school, and I still forget how awful the cafeteria food is.”

Flinging her fork to the edge of her cardboard tray, Katara presses her fingers to her temples and redirects the conversation back to her current predicament, “Why can’t I just catch a ride with you?”

Yue’s brow quirks upward as she pushes her bowl of stew away, “Do you really want to third-wheel with me and Jet?”

Tucking a wispy curl behind her ear, Katara blanches. “No, thank you. Wait, Toph, you’re going too, aren’t you?”

“With Twinkletoes,” Toph nods, grinning deviously.

Katara throws her head back with a groan. “I do _not_ want to be seventh-wheeling tonight.” Her chipped blue nails tap out nervous patterns on her flimsy lunch tray.

“And that’s why you should invite Zuko to drive up with you,” Yue states matter-of-factly. “You shouldn’t be so worried. He’ll say yes.” With practiced ease, she sweeps her long bleached hair into a high ponytail, tying it up at the top of her head with a dark purple rubberband.

With a roll of her eyes, Katara scoffs, “Yeah, right. In my dreams, maybe.” She hangs her head, tucking her hands behind her neck while keeping her eyes downcast. “I still can’t believe you guys managed to turn a stupid swimming, stargazing friend-picnic into a _date_ night.” Out of her peripherals, she spots Jet as he swings by their table in the middle of the busy cafeteria.

Slinging an arm around Yue, Jet drops his tray onto the table, grinning at his girlfriend with a charm that’s so uniquely, annoyingly his. “So what’re we discussing?”

“We’re trying to convince Sugar Queen to ask out Sparky so that she won’t feel left out tonight,” Toph fills him in flatly, reaching for Yue’s barely eaten bowl of stew.

Jet lets out a long whistle, tossing the toothpick he was using onto his tray as he prepares to eat his crab puffs and stir-fry, “Oh boy.” Without being prompted, he places a moon peach on Yue’s tray, smirking at her delight.

“Thank you, Jet,” Yue coos, examining the fruit before taking a quick bite of it.

Wrinkling her nose, Toph makes a few choice gagging noises, “Oh, spirits, I need to get out of here. I can’t handle all this mushy stuff.”

Running a hand through his unruly hair, Jet continues to smirk, “Shove it, Toph. You just wish you shared a lunch period with Aang.”

“Shut up, Wheat Thin,” Toph grumbles back, shoveling down Yue’s sea prune stew with unusual vigor. She lands a well-aimed kick to Jet from beneath the table, and he huffs in light annoyance. “Back to Sugar Queen.”

“Quit calling me Wheat Thin, Shortie. And you’re right. I forgot,” Jet redirects his gaze to Katara with amusement. “Do it. Ask him out.”

Katara glares at him, “Not _you_ too.” She crosses her arms over her chest, not above childish pouting.

“It’s either Zuko or Haru,” Yue adds, looking far more smug than usual, sitting up as her boyfriend begins to tear into his food. “Just ask one of them to drive up with you. You’re making this out to be bigger than it has to be, Katara.”

With an exaggerated sigh, Toph brushes her bangs out of her face. “Sugar Queen, if Twinkletoes had the guts to ask me out, then you should be able to do the same. Sparky isn’t even that scary.” 

From across the cafeteria, Katara spots Zuko as he finally exit the lunch line, crossing over to go sit with his normal fifth period crew. “Oh, spirits.” Instantly, her heart is seized with anxiety, and she threads her hands through her curly hair nervously. Somehow, she catches eyes with him, and that just seems to make everything even _worse._

Zuko’s lunch tray hovers over his table, but he doesn’t tear his gaze away. “Hey, Katara!” he calls over the din, followed by, “Hey, Jet,” a nod of greeting, “Hey, Yue,” and then another nod before, “But not you Toph.”

Toph lets out a snort of rage at being dismissed, even in jest. “Sparky, you better get over here before I drag you here myself!” Then, she turns to Katara, hissing, “Look, I’m helping you. Are you gonna do it or not?”

Blanching, Katara shoves her tray away. Now is _not_ the time for a salad. As Zuko rapidly approaches their table, she panics, hoping beyond hope that her face is not betraying a single emotion right now.

“What’s up, Toph?” Zuko sets his tray down and sits beside her, leveling his gaze on the tiny girl with amusement in his golden eyes.

Toph huffs and folds her arms over her chest. “You suck, Sparky. Just in case you didn’t know.”

With a smirk, Jet takes one last bite of his meal before stacking the empty tray atop his girlfriend’s. “Damn, is that the best you got? You’re not too good at insults, Shortie.”

Cursing her peripherals, Katara still manages to catch sight of Zuko laughing even though she’s stubbornly directing her gaze ahead of her. As Zuko wolfs down his meal and endures all of Toph and Jet’s ribbing, she fiddles with her hands in her lap, pressing tiny crescents into her skin as she inwardly debates the best way to go about asking Zuko to go _stargazing_ with her so she can avoid seventh-wheeling with her friends.

Yue catches her eyes and gives her an encouraging smile. Then, she winks, and Katara can’t help but crack a grin. Jet’s definitely rubbing off on his girlfriend, that’s for sure. Once Zuko’s tray is clear and he’s making idle small talk with the rest of the table, Katara steels herself. 

It’s now or never.

Catching her drift, Yue places a hand on Jet’s elbow, asking him under a thick curtain of dark lashes if he’d like to accompany her to her next class. As they walk off, they drop their trays off into the brightly colored recycling bins located toward the center of the cafeteria before exiting through the northeast doors. 

“Hey, thanks for the chat, Sparky, but I kinda need to dip too.” Moments later, Toph gathers her things, popping a stick of gum into her mouth and gripping her cane. “I have trig with Twinkletoes sixth, and he’s utterly hopeless without me.” Her lips quirk up into a mischievous grin just before she takes off, “I’ll be seeing you tonight, _Katara_.”

And just like that, Katara’s left alone at the table with Zuko. 

“You’re seeing Toph tonight?” Zuko asks curiously, jerking her from her thoughts. He pulls his bag onto his lap as he searches for something in it, finally withdrawing a beat-up notebook and a capless pen.

Katara shifts uncomfortably in her seat before laughing nervously, “Oh, yeah. We’re all driving up to the lake that’s at the back of Yue’s family property to… stargaze and swim and stuff.” 

His eyes light with recognition, “Gotcha. Yeah, I heard about that from Azula.” Of course he’d have heard about it. Their siblings are dating, after all. “So you’re all going up?” She senses the hesitation in his voice. He wasn’t invited, but his sister was.

“Actually… about that,” she hopes he doesn’t notice how much she’s shaking from sheer apprehension. “I was kind of wondering… If you’d like to go out with me?” The words escape her lips in a rush, and she’s almost unable to believe she actually said them. “I mean, if you’d… like to drive up with me. Or go out with me. Either of the above?” She can’t meet his eyes, and she’s going to die of mortification, and she’s going to fight Toph and Yue and Jet for pressuring her into this even though it’s been a long time coming, and she’s going to melt into a puddle of embarrassment for the rest of her natural-born life _._

A warm hand settles comfortably on her arm; the notebook and pen are tucked back into his backpack. “Katara?”

Her brows draw together as she finally turns in her seat, slightly irritated that he won’t put her out of her misery immediately. “ _What_.”

Zuko, to his credit, doesn’t melt beneath her gaze like she expects him to. Instead, his lips tilt upward as his eyes search hers carefully, “My car or your pick up?”

“What?”

“My car or your pick up?” he repeats, the subtle husk of his voice cutting through the haze of her mind. 

She’s still not sure she’s heard him right. “You’ll go out with me?”

“If you’ll go out with me,” he grins. “You beat me to the punch, Katara.” Tentatively, he reaches forward to tuck a loose curl behind her ear, and her heart stutters in her chest because of his sudden closeness. “I’ve been trying to work up the courage to ask you out for a while now.”

She laughs, nearly breathless as her nerves collide simultaneously with surprise, attraction, and relief. “My pick up.”

“What?”

“I’ll swing by your house around five in my pick up.” Her eyes flick downward as she tries her best to hide her smile. “It’ll be more comfortable than your car because we can spread blankets out in the back.”

His head tilts with amusement as he nods sagely in agreement, “Of course. And I’m bringing trunks, I assume?”

“Trunks and a towel,” she corrects. The reality of the situation hasn’t quite sunk in yet, and she’s still breathless. “So… you know. You don’t get too cold after we swim.”

“But, Katara,” he begins lowly, and suddenly, he’s leaning closer, but she doesn’t pull away, and his gaze is still smoldering, even as his bangs sweep over his eyes. “I don’t _get_ cold.”

Then, the bell rings, and the spell is broken. 

He reaches for her empty tray, standing right as she does. “So my house at five?” he asks innocently, as though he wasn’t just flirting shamelessly with her after accepting her invitation to go swimming and stargazing with their friends as her _date._

“Yeah,” she hates how airy her voice sounds. “Your house at five. I’ll be there. In my pick up.” If she doesn’t embarrass herself to the grave first.

“Can I walk you to class, Katara?” Zuko asks, slinging his bag over his shoulder; the fond way he’s looking at her causes her to forget just how awkward she feels.

“I’d like that, Zuko.” Then, with a renewed boldness, she loops an arm through his. “Tonight won’t be so bad after all.”

**Author's Note:**

> honestly, my favorite part of this whole chapter is the background jue, lol, but shh you didn't hear that from me
> 
> i'm debating on whether this is going to be a twoshot or a threeshot (do those even exist whatever idc) so... yes. lol
> 
> also, no, i'm not from the country so i'm goin off what my cousins in middle america do for fun, lol. i'm from a city so (during-not-covid) we ride the rails n watch skylines instead ;)
> 
> please comment/kudos/say hi on [tumblr](elsie-zel.tumblr.com) if you'd like. hearing from y'all always makes me smile >:)
> 
> Elsie


End file.
